Neocate is a baby formula that is used for children who are allergic or intolerant of foods commonly found in other baby formulas. It is often given to babies who are allergic to soy or milk.

What makes Neocate better for babies with allergies is reportedly the fact that it is an elemental formula, which means that the proteins in the formula are entirely broken down into amino acid components. Proteins that are broken down are thought to be easier for babies to process.  

Is Neocate an Effective Formula?

Though Neocate is advertised as a formula that gives babies the complete nutritional profile they need, Neocate may be harming some babies’ development, and possibly causing bone fractures in infants. A 2017 study conducted by researchers at Yale University and Mayo Clinic suggested that the phosphate present in Neocate was not in a form that could be used by babies’ bodies, causing them to develop bone problems. 

Why Is Phosphate Important?

Phosphate is essential to bone development. In fact, it is just as important to healthy bone development as calcium. Bones are composed of over 50 percent phosphorous. The American College of Nutrition states that calcium and phosphorous are “codependent” in bone health.

Why Are Babies Developing Bone Problems after Consuming Neocate?

According to the 2017 study, though Neocate has phosphate in it, the phosphate does not come in a form that can be easily absorbed by babies, so it may not do much good. Because the phosphate in Neocate may not be able to be absorbed, babies’ bones may not be able to develop normally.

Although Neocate declares that the formula is made up of amino acids, and that these proteins are easy for babies and children to digest, it seems that the form of phosphorus in Neocate is not easily absorbable.

What Bone Problems May Result from Neocate?

The 2017 study reported that babies who were not able to absorb the phosphate in Neocate developed hypophosphatemia — low phosphate levels. The study included 51 children with hypophosphatemia who had been fed a strictly Neocate diet for a period of time prior to their development of low phosphorus. They were located at 17 institutions in Ireland and North America. Approximately 94 percent of the children suffered from rickets, fractures, or under mineralization of their bones. After the children were taken off their Neocate diets and were switched to other forms of nutrition, the bone abnormalities and low phosphorus levels were corrected in almost all of the study’s subjects.

Hypophosphatemia has been linked to low bone density. In turn, low bone density can cause rickets, skeletal deformities, stunted growth, and broken bones. Bone fractures in infants and other hypophosphatemia symptoms were reportedly seen in infants who have been given Neocate.

Though rickets is a condition commonly associated with vitamin D deficiency, it can be caused by any nutrient deficiency that impacts bone health.

Sadly, these conditions were reportedly observed in babies who were fed Neocate as their primary source of nutrition. Research suggests that bone fractures in infants, as well as other bone conditions in infants resulted after Neocate use.

In another study from 2018, the link between Neocate and low phosphorus levels was also confirmed. According to the results of a study published in Hormone Research in Paediatrics, between 11% and 23% of children receiving Neocate through a tube may develop metabolic bone disease.

Have Parents Come Under Suspicion Due to Broken Bones?

Unfortunately, the father of a 10-year-old boy with cerebral palsy who needed a feeding tube and a wheelchair was suspected of abuse after the boy suffered a fractured wrist in December 2017. Just a month later, the boy was found to have a fractured femur on his left leg.

The boy’s dad, Bill Elam, told the Clarion Ledger that his son has serious medical problems, and has been in and out of the hospital for a variety of ailments, including pancreatitis.

After the second broken bone was found, though, Elam said he began to receive visits from Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services multiple times each week. Caseworkers allegedly suspected the boy had been a victim of an abusive father.

Elam said he didn’t know why his son had suffered the broken bones. According to the Clarion Ledger, Elam said the caseworkers didn’t question any of his son’s nurses, even though the child receives 24-hour nursing care, including during class time at a local elementary school where he’s enrolled in a special education curriculum.

While he was under scrutiny, Elam’s adult daughter told him she had seen an ad on television regarding the possibility of Neocate hurting children. She knew her dad fed the boy a steady diet of Neocate. The TV ad indicated Neocate had been associated with phosphorous deficiencies that led to broken bones. She immediately called her dad and told him.

A phosphorous test revealed the child had very low bone density, and he was gradually taken off of Neocate products. The link between the boy’s bone fractures and Neocate is not an absolute, but Elam told the Clarion Ledger his boy spent five weeks in a hospital to be weened off the elemental formula.

Can Babies Recover if They Have Experienced Hypophosphatemia Symptoms after Neocate Use?

Happily, the study into Neocate indicated that when babies were switched from Neocate to another formula whose phosphate was more easily absorbed, their conditions linked to hyphophsopshatemia, like broken bones in infants and other conditions, could be improved in many cases.

How Can Parents Identify Hypophosphatemia?

Parents may not know that broken bones in infants or other conditions may be linked to Neocate use and are not the result of other conditions. A medical professional can help parents determine if their babies bone issues are possibly connected to Neocate use.

Other symptoms of hypophosphatemia that parents may be able to watch out for include muscle weakness, fatigue, appetite loss, confusion or irritability, bone pain or bone fractures in infants, tooth decay or late incoming baby teeth, and slowed growth.

In addition to the risk of rickets, bone fractures, and bone damage, low levels of phosphorus may also lead to complications including the death of muscle tissue or red blood cells, irregular heart rhythm, or breathing failure.